Olympic Dreams for Philly in 2024

Could the city be a viable choice to host the Summer Games in 2024?

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A letter sent by the United States Olympic Committee is creating some buzz in Philadelphia today.

The USOC is trying to gauge interest for the 2024 Summer Games, from cities who have previously expressed a desire to host the Olympics, as well as the largest U.S. cities, including Philadelphia.

"Everyone loves the Olympics, it's certainly very exciting. It would be an honor just to have it in the United States, let alone in Philadelphia," said Nutter.

The USOC has two years before they will decide whether they even want to submit a bid for 2024, but for now they are exploring the possibility.

"We would like to begin having discussions with interested cities about possible bid themes as well as the infrastructure, financial resources and other assets that are required to host the Games, said USOC CEO Scott Blackmun in the letter sent to those 35 cities.

Mayor Nutter says Philadelphia has an incredible array of facilities, and a unique location with easy access by road, rail, air and water, but he calls this all "prematurely premature."

"Other than the wonder and the spectacle of it, we're talking about something that is 11 years away, that the United States Olympic Committee has to first decide to bid or not," said Nutter.

Philadelphia has been down this road before, reaching the top five U.S. cities in the running for 2016, before being beat out by Chicago, who was ultimately passed over for Rio De Janeiro, Brazil.

Larry Needle, Executive Director of the Philadelphia Sports Congress talks with pride about making the top five list for 2016 and says the feedback they received from the Olympic Committee and consultants back then is that Philadelphia is a viable choice.

"I think we've got a great story to tell as this modern renaissance city and there's no question that I think we could and should be a player in this," said Needle.

He says the idea is not just to land the event, but to explore what the city's Olympic legacy would be, like leaving behind improved transportation infrastructure, neighborhoods, and venues to be used on a regular basis and to look at the ultimate impact on international tourism for Philadelphia.

So what would it take?

The Olympic Committee says the operating budget would be around $3 billion dollars, not including costs associated with venue construction.

The USOC letter also lays out these requirements for cities:

45,000 hotel rooms

An Olympic Village that sleeps 16,500 and has a 5000-person dining hall

Operations space for over 15,000 media and broadcasters

An international airport that can handle thousands of international travelers per day

Public transportation service to venues

Roadway closures to allow exclusive use for Games-related transportation

A workforce of up to 200,000

The last time the U.S. hosted the Olympics was the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City, and the last Summer Games held here was Atlanta in 1996.

"It's a long way from here to there, but we're excited to at least be talking about the possibility," said Needle.